Kolkata: Poush Mela will be observed in Santiniketan as usual but there will be no Bhanga mela.
The decision was held a high-level meeting attended by the senior officials of the Visva Bharati and Santiniketan Trust. Bhanga mela is held after the four days of mela is ended and continued for nearly a week.
The first mela was held 7 Poush, 1894. Initially the mela was organised by the Santiniketan Trust. Later, Visva Bharati authorities began to organise the fair.
It was decided that no Bhanga mela will be allowed this year. The environment norms will be strictly followed. The stall owners have to book online. The heap of garbage at the mela ground will be cleared regularly.
The popularity of the mela has gone up over the years and thousands of people from different parts of India and abroad come to attend the mela. All the rooms in hotels, resorts and lodges in and around Santiniketan are booked well in advance. Artisans from all over Bengal come to display their products at the stalls.
In 2015, a case was filed in the National Green tribunal over the failure of the Visva Bharati authorities to clear the heap of garbage that is generated during the fair. It was alleged that the garbage was not being cleaned even a week after the mela had ended. Despite the Visva Bharati's efforts to keep the mela ground clean another case was filed in the National Green Tribunal in 2019. Following this the Visva Bharati authorities decided to come out of the fair. The online booking of stalls has been made mandatory.
A mela will also be held at the proposed Gitabitan township which is being developed by Housing Infrastructure Development Corporation (Hidco). At the township there is an area earmarked for the artisans who can stay there and sell their products.
The artisans will be allotted shops. This will encourage the artisans and will give the people an opportunity to buy from the artisans through out the year.